Dana White Says Chael Sonnen ‘Needs to Stop the Comedy, Leave the Jokes to the Comedians’

Where would Chael Sonnen be today without his legendary mouth? Probably nowhere near the headliner status that he holds today, despite four failed runs at the title in the UFC and WEC.

After a recent controversial joke on national TV, though, UFC President Dana White thinks it might be time for Chael to cut that nonsense out.

“It’s at the point where I’m not upset, but Chael is a smart guy,” White said at a pre-UFC 165 press conference. “He’s a funny guy. He’s a talented guy and has a huge future. He’s just got to stop with the [jokes], you know?”

The joke in question happened on a recent episode of “UFC Tonight,” where he made light of the domestic violence incident involving pop singers Rihanna and Chris Brown.

“Look, Floyd [Mayweather] needs to keep doing what he’s doing, which is fighting complete tomato cans that we’ve never heard of before,” Sonnen said. “I’ve never seen anybody in the history of America get so rich and so famous off of having complete wimps throwing punch at their faces.”

Shortly after the episode aired, FOX issued an apology for the remark.

“First of all, the joke wasn’t that funny,” White added. “He’s not a comedian, and you can’t make fun of domestic violence or any other thing. He’s a sports commentator, and he’s got to knock that s–t off. He’s got to stop. He’s got to stop, or it’s not going to be good.

“Chael needs to stop the comedy and do what he’s on that show to do. He’s great at it. He’s super talented. Leave the jokes to the comedians.”

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